Xenoblade Chronicles: The Road Well Travelled
by GundamNik
Summary: Spoiler Warning: Story takes place after the events of the game so I recommend playing the game to the end before reading. Takes place forty years after the defeat of Zanza where Melia is give some troubling news about a close friend.
1. Chapter 1: Bad News

Chapter 1: Bad News

It had been forty years since Shulk had defeated Zanza and created the new world that they all lived in. Within that time frame all four races had come together to live side by side in harmony while at the same time creating new technologies to help them rediscovery the world but with all the good that this new world had given them it also had its fare share of crisis from solving the ether crisis to finding new homes for the four races and Tyrea attempt to take control of the High Entia.

The road had been long and hard for everyone involved but for one person that road was now paved with nothing more than pain. As ruler of the High Entia, Melia Antiqua now had to deal with the knowledge that those that she had travelled with to avenge her family and to create this world were beginning to reach the end of their life span. Melia had already said good bye to two of her beloved friends, the Heropon Riki and the leader of the Homs, Dunban. Just remembering them always reminded her of how different the High Entia and Machina were compared to the Homs and Nopon.

Like any normal day, Melia would wake up hours before she needed to so that she could walk around the imperial garden and attended to it as she had done before becoming ruler of the High Entia. Melia did this every morning just to try and clear her head ready for the day to day running's of her people but unlike any normal day everything was about to change for her at breakfast. While eating at the breakfast table Melia would take this opportunity to read any personal letters that she had received and that was when she discovered a letter with Sharla's handwriting on it. Upon seeing this letter Melia opened it up and began to read the contents.

_Dear Melia_

_Normally I would wait for your reply before sending you another letter but due to your past with him I believed that I should notify you right away. Shulk is dying..._

At that very moment Melia stopped reading the letter and the spoon that she was holding fell from her hand and connect with the bowl below creating a clashing sound that alerted the maid. The maid stop what she was doing and made her way to the princess to see what was wrong but upon her arrived she could see that almost all of the colour from the young princess face had drained away as if she had just seen a ghost.

It had taken Melia a few minutes to come to terms with the fact that the one person that she loved the most was dying. Without realising that her maid was beside her, Melia got herself out from behind the table with the letter in hand and began heading to her bedroom where she would get changed without taking any notice of the questions that her maid was presenting.

Once Melia had changed into her official attire, she began to make her way towards the transporter pad at the other end of her home that lead to the Audience Chamber inside the Imperial Palace. While in route she quickly told her maid not to worry about her and to continue with her daily duties. As the princess got closer to the transporter pad, she mustard everything that she had to hide her true feeling from those that would cross paths with her as she didn't want anyone to see how vulnerable she was. The moment that Melia stood on transporter pad she was instantly transported to the Audience Chamber where she could see the minsters beginning to assemble for this morning meeting. As the princess approached the throne she could see that they were all looking to their watches to see if they had miss read the time but before any of them could question her about it, Melia had arrived in front of them all ready to tell them what was going on.

"Before anyone asks, yes I am early and second I am cancelling all of my meeting from now until my return to the capital. Any and all matters are to go thought my aid who will reschedule them upon my return."

The princess allowed a few seconds for her words to sink in before turning on her heels and heading back towards the transporter pad that she had arrived from. As Melia walked towards the pad she could hear the whispers of the minsters discussing what was going on but she did not take any notice of this as she was fully aware that she would explain everything to them upon her return.


	2. Chapter 2: The Hidden Truth

Chapter 2: The Hidden Truth

By lunchtime Melia had pack a small bag of clothes and made her way down to the small private hanger that housed her own shuttle that would take her to any destination she wished. Once the shuttle was in the air, the princess set a course to the newly relocated colony 6 which had been moved from its original place on the Bionis Leg to the newly created continent, which was located west of the Bionis remains.

After Shulk and the group had defeating Zanza forty years ago, Alvis gave him the decision to choose what he wanted to do with the world now that he was a god. Shulk had made the decision to create a world where there was no need for gods which in turn created the world that they now lived in. As a result of Shulk's wish, Alvis informed them all that it would mean the slow destruction of the Bionis and the possibility of killing all life that stayed on her if they were unaware of what was going on. With this knowledge Shulk ask Alvis for one last requested which was to move all life on the Bionis including Colony 6 to the nearest land mass and within weeks of Shulk's decision the Bionis finally collapsed into the ocean leaving the back and lower section of the legs visible along with parts of Eryth Sea.

As the shuttle approached the newly relocated colony 6, Melia could see that within the forty years of the colony being relocated to the continent it had expanded in all directions to the point that there were now five landing zones in which she could choose to land at. The princess had chosen to land her shuttle on the landing strip closest to the coast for two reasons. The first being that it was about an hour walk from the landing strip to Shulk and Fiora's home and the second reason being that it would take the colony a lot longer to discovery that the princess of the High Entia had arrived.

With the shuttle on the landing pad Melia grab her bag and began to make her way out of the shuttle and onto the landing strip itself but before she had even taken two steps on solid ground one of the officers running the landing strip was already approaching her.

Within in seconds the officer was within ear shot of the High Entia woman and began to question her on how long she was going to be staying at the colony. This may have been a simple question for any normal person but for Melia it was not due to the fact that she was unaware of how bad Shulk's condition was which meant that she didn't know how long she was going to be staying at the colony. Melia grabbed the small pouch that was hanging from her dress and throw it towards the officer telling him that she would be here for no longer than a week and that if she was any longer she would pay the difference. As Melia passed the Homs officer and continued to walk towards the exit, the Homs officer began to quickly count the coin that he had in his possession and quickly discovered that the High Entia woman had paid far too much for a week's stay. As he turned around to notify her of this, Melia quickly shouted back tell him too keep the change.

The easiest way to reach her destination was to leave the landing strip and head directly towards the coast, once arriving at the coast all Melia would then have to do was to follow the coast line east till she reached their home. Melia believed the reason that Shulk and Fiora had decided to build their home out by the coast was so that they could be away from the hustle and bustle of the colony while at the same time enabling them to be close enough to get anything from the colony if they needed to. Melia also suspected that it had something to do with the view that they would get each and every day.

If there was one thing that the princess enjoyed the most each and every time she made this journey was to walk across the sandy coast line bare foot. The reason that Melia enjoyed doing this was because she got to feel the soft sand run across her toes as she walked through it but it also bought back memories of the first time she had experienced it which was after the group had fallen from Galahad Fortress to the Fallen Arm.

As she got closer to her destination Melia noticed that a silhouette was heading towards her from the direction that she was travelling in and it wasn't until the silhouette was a lot closer to her that the princess could make out that the person heading towards her was a tallish woman with long hair. Within seconds of seeing these features she knew that it could be none other than Sharla and within minutes Sharla was calling out to her.

"You hadn't changed much have you?"

Once the two of them met up and continued to walk towards Shulk and Fiora's home, Melia could tell that Sharla had a surprising look on her face along with a question.

"You got here quicker than I had expected?"

"The moment I read your letter I knew that I needed to get here as soon as possible but how did you know that I had arrived?"

"You need to remember Melia it is not every day that the crowned princess of the High Entia arrives at colony 6 unannounced, plus I know you better than yourself."

Sharla was correct because as Melia looking back on the time the two of them had known each other Sharla had always been able to pointing out all the parts of herself that she was trying to hide from everyone else including the fact that she had very strong feeling of love towards Shulk.

As the two of them continued to walk towards house, Sharla was trying to understand how Melia got here so quickly. Melia explained that as ruler of the High Entia she had the power to do anything that she wanted to within reason and if they was one thing that she had learned from what happened before was the fact that she was not willing to give up the chance to say good bye to any of her closest friends. Sharla understood what Melia was talking about because she knew how devastated Melia was when she wasn't given the chance to say good bye to Dunban, Sharla still suspected that Melia blamed herself for not having that chance. As the two of them reached the front fence to the house Melia and Sharla could hear Reyn docile tones coming from inside the house, which made Melia question Sharla as to how Reyn arrived at the house before them.

"Melia do you really think that I would allow Reyn to drive the buggy here by himself after what happened the first time he drove it?"

"You have a valid point there?"

As the two of them reached the front door and were about to knock on it, the door began to open to relive Fiora standing behind it. Melia could see by the look on Fiora's face that she was expecting her.

"I now understand why Reyn was so cagey about how he got here in the first place; please come in, Shulk will be glad to see you both."

As the two of them walked in, Fiora closed the door behind them and followed them into the living room were both Shulk and Reyn were talking about the good old times but the moment Shulk saw both Sharla and Melia walking into the room he stopped speaking and looked at both of them with a face that showed so much enthusiasm. Once Shulk had composed himself, he began to get himself out of his chair and began to approach the three women.

"Welcome please come in and take a seat, I was expecting to see you so soon Melia?"

As Shulk approached her, she could tell that he was about to hug her which in turn bought all the feeling that she had felt from him back to the surface but as the two of them embraced one another Melia could feel that Shulk had lost a lot of weight since the last time they had seen one another. After Melia and Shulk had finished their hug Shulk then went to do the same thing with Sharla but she made a comment about him being up and about on his feet considering his condition, by this point Reyn had gotten out of his seat and made his way over to greet Melia in the same fashion. Once all the introductions were done with Shulk followed Sharla's orders and went back towards his seat while at the same time offering everyone else to take a seat with him. It had been almost three years since the group had last came together and like the last time it was not under the most happiest of circumstances. Once everyone was seated Melia began to ask the questions that had been nagging at her ever since she read Sharla's letter.

"If I am ask Shulk, what is actual wrong with you?"

Everyone in the room went silent for a moment before Sharla finally broke the silences to explain what she had found out.

"In all my time as a medic I have never seen anything like this before, all I have been able to discovery so far is that Shulk's body is not producing enough ether energy to sustain his life."

Even though Reyn was married to Sharla he still didn't completely understand everything she said.

"How can our bodies produce ether energy?"

Sharla just nodded her head in disappointment to Reyn's response and then began to explain to him that all life from the Bionis generates small amounts of ether energy to keep their body alive and that if their body stopped producing this energy then the person would die which was the case with Shulk.

"So what you are trying to tell me is that it is our life force."

Upon hearing Reyn's response Sharla responded by saying that she couldn't believe that she had married him let alone had a child with him which caused everyone in the room to burst out laughing and as per normal when it came to Reyn he couldn't understand why they were laughing. While everyone was laughing Melia remembered a time in which Sharla fired ether crystals into the air around her when the group first discovered her unconscious in Makna Forest after failing to stop the Telethia the first time.

"Sharla isn't there a way in which we can kick starting Shulk's body by firing ether energy at it like you did with me back in Makna Forest?"

Just by looking at Sharla and Fiora expression, Melia could see that they had already tired her suggestion.

"To be honest Melia, I have tried everything that I can think of in trying to kick start his body into producing more ether energy but none of them have stuck, it is as if Shulk's body has just given up."

Melia didn't want to believe Sharla due to everything that she and Linada had accomplished over the years, which lead to Melia asking if Linada had any ideas on the subject.

"The moment Fiora contacted me about something being wrong with Shulk, Linada was the first person that I got in contact with and like myself she hasn't been able to find away to kick start his body."

Everyone in the room went completely silent for a few moments before Reyn asked the one question that everyone in the room wanted to know.

"Have you been able to find out what could have caused this to happen?"

What everyone was not expecting to hear was Shulk's reasoning behind it.

"It has to be because of the Monado."

Everyone began to try and think of how Shulk came to this conclusion but before anyone could ask him Melia spoke up.

"How did you come to this conclusion Shulk?"

"If you remember Egil created the Apocrypha generator to neutralise the effect of the Monado but after a few hours I was still able to uses it even thought I shouldn't have been able to. I believe that it way have been my will to make the Monado work which in tail lead to me tap into my own bodies ether energy."

"I thought you believed that it was the beginnings of your own Monado?"

"That was what I originally through Fiora but after Dunban passed away I began to think about what if the Monado had a part to play in his death too. Dunban like myself was very health before any symptoms appeared and we all know what Dunban was like; he never told anyone if there was something wrong with himself until it was too late."

Everyone in the room went quiet again to think about what Shulk had just said but Sharla wasn't happy with Shulk conclusion.

"Your theory sounds very good Shulk but when I did the autopsy on Dunban body I never found anything that linked his death to the lack of ether energy within his body."

"I don't want you to think that I am agreeing with Shulk just because I am his wife but if what Shulk has said is true, you do have to take into account that Dunban was never able to uses his right arm after the battle of Sword Valley."

Melia could see that talking about her older brother still upset Fiora deeply as it did Melia due to them working so closely together. Shulk on the other hand decided that it was about time that they change the subject to something completely different by asking who was going to stay for dinner.


	3. Chapter 3: To Those That Left Too Soon

Chapter 3: To Those That Left Too Soon

To make the night as remunerable as possible everyone chipped in to helping Fiora create a banquet that they would all enjoy and talk about for years to come, the only two that were not allowed to help out were Reyn and Shulk. Even when Reyn begged Sharla to help out in the kitchen she still stood by her discussion not to allow him anywhere near it due to him almost burning down their home the last time he tried to cook something special for her.

Once all the food had been cooking and placed on the table everyone made their way into dining room to seat down and enjoy meal while at the same time reminiscing about the good old times while also catching up on events that had happened between them all since the last time they all meet. As the evening progressed on everyone was laughing and giggling till Reyn made a comment about how good the food was and how much Riki would have enjoyed it if he was still alive. It was at this moment that everyone took a moment of silences to remember those that were unable to make it, Fiora then broke the silences by picking up her wine glass and speaking.

"A toast to those that were unable to join us tonight while also helping shape the world we live in...Dunban."

"With her glass in the air, Melia followed suit by picking up her own glass and saying.

"To the Heropon Riki."

Upon saying those words, Melia's turned her attention towards Reyn believing that he would have spoken Riki's name as well but instead he surprised everyone while looking directly into Sharla eyes as he spoke.

"Gadolt"

"Melia noticed that by hearing Gadolt name Sharla's expression had changed to the point that she could see that Sharla was trying to hold back the tears that were being to collect behind her eyes for her fallen love. After a few seconds Sharla composed herself and reviled the name that she had chosen to speak and to Melia it was a name that she had not expected anyone but her to say.

"Kallian."

With Sharla's glass raised in front of her along with a single tear escaping from her eye, everyone's attention was now drawn to Shulk who concluded the honouring by raising his glass in front of him while at the same time moving it to the centre.

"Egil."

With Shulk's glass in the centre of the table everyone bought their glass together to bring an end to the honouring.

With the meal coming to a close Fiora took this opportunity to begin collecting up the dishes but the moment that both Melia and Sharla noticed what Fiora was trying to do they stop her and told her to relax as they both offered to help clear up instead. Both Melia and Sharla could see that Fiora was hesitate in agreeing with them but after a few moments she finally agreed to their request and began to leave the table while also helping Shulk out of the dining room and into the living room.

With everything in the kitchen Sharla took it upon herself to begin washing up while Melia grab a dish cloth and began to dry up the items that Sharla had washed. It was around this point that Melia decided to thank Sharla for toasting her brother at the table.

"Think nothing of it Melia, if it wasn't for Kallian saving our life's when Dickson and Lorithia attack Junks while we were escaping the Mechonis we wouldn't have been able to stop Zanza in the first place."

Melia knew that Sharla was correct in what she had said but Melia still had a question that she hoped Sharla might be able shed some light on while at the same time opening up an old wound.

"If I may ask…why did Reyn decide to honour Gadolt?"

As expected Sharla stopped what she was doing for a brief moment and lowered her head down while trying to hold back the tears that were more than likely going to start flow at any moment. As Sharla replied to her question, Melia could hear how upset Sharla was through her tone of voice.

"Reyn has always been the kind of guy that does as he is told and when Gadolt told him to take care of me he has done everything within his power to make sure that nothing comes to harm me while keep a smile on my face at all time."

As Sharla took a moment to compose herself so that she could carry on with the task at hand Melia moved closer to her in a hopes of comforting her but what Sharla said next left Melia thinking of Reyn in a completely different light to the Reyn that she had know for all these years.

"Reyn has always believes that if Gadolt did not try and save us when we were leaving Agniratha then he wouldn't have been able to fulfil his wise in looking after me and because of that I couldn't have asked for a better husband."/

As Sharla bought her head back up to continue the dishes Melia could see that Sharla had allowed a few tears to escape her eyes but Melia could tell that those tears were not of sadness but of joy and love. Once Sharla had fully composed herself, the two of them finished clearing the dishes and began to made their way into the living room where they discovered that the three of them had moved from the living room to the outside patio which overlooking the ocean.

* * *

Note: I would like to give credit to J. Michael Straczynski (Creator of Babylon 5) who inspired me to going into writing and were part of this chapter ideas came from.


	4. Chapter 4: My True Feeling for You

Chapter 4: My True Feeling for You

As the day had progressed, Shulk could feel that his body was becoming weaker with every passing second but Shulk didn't mind this because by the afternoon he felt like he would be able to live his remaining hours with those that he cared for the most. When Melia and Sharla appeared on the patio beside him, Shulk decided that he would like to take one last walk across the sea front before the end but as he began to get himself up off the chair that he was seating in Fiora did as she had done for the last couple of days whenever he was outside and that was give him a hand. As Shulk began to walk across the patio he could feel that his body had become a lot weaker than he had expected and because of this within two step Shulk could feel that his leg was about to give way and as it did Shulk began to fall towards the ground. As Shulk began to fall, Fiora did what she could to try and manoeuvring him so that he would fall on to her but she was not quick enough and because of this Shulk hit the ground along with Fiora.

The moment Sharla saw Shulk and Fiora falling towards the ground she quickly sprung into action by telling Reyn to get her medical kit which was located in the buggy parked up outside. As Reyn made his way around the house towards the buggy, Sharla told Melia to give Fiora a hand up and to help her manoeuvre Shulk's body into the recovery position. Once Shulk was placed in the recovery position, Sharla began to ask Shulk if he was feeling any pain throughout his body and where it was located but Shulk replied to her question by saying that he didn't feel any pain but he did notice that his body had becoming weaker than he had expected.

Within seconds Reyn was back with Sharla's medical kit which as soon as he gave it to her she began to exanimate Shulk's body to see if he had received any injuries from the fall. After a few minutes, Sharla could tell that there were no physically injuries and that she would like the help of her husband to help her move Shulk from the patio to his bedroom. Fiora lead the way with Melia picking up Sharla's Medical bag, once Shulk was on the bed Sharla tried to run addition test on him to which Shulk refused and began to explain the truth to everyone.

"I understand that you want to find out the root cause of the problem Sharla but I have a feeling that I may not survive past tonight."

Everyone believed that what Shulk had said minutes ago was him joking about the situation but for him to say that he was not going to make it through the night was something that they were not expecting to hear let alone believe but by listening to his voice they could tell that it had become a lot weaker than before.

"Why didn't you say something sooner Shulk, Sharla might have been able to help you?"

As Melia listened to Fiora's words, she could hear that she was becoming upset with the knowledge that her husband was going to die.

"When I knew that the end was coming I decided that it would be best for me to enjoy what little time I had left with those that I cared about than being stuck in bed. If this does turn out to be my final day then I can say without a shadow of a doubt that this will be a day to remember."

Upon hearing those words Fiora cracked a small smile as a lone tear began to fall from her left eye. When the young princess saw the lone tear fall down Fiora's cheek, Melia could feel her own tears beginning to collect in her eyes but as she began to hold them back Reyn began to speak which made it even harder for her to push them back.

"I promised Fiora that I would not allow anything to happen to you Shulk but how am I going to protect you if you..."

"Reyn you fulfilled Fiora's promise years ago by making sure that I lived a long and health life, if anything Reyn I want you to make sure that you and your wife have the opportunity to have a long and health life together."

If there was one think that Melia had never seen in her entire life was Reyn crying but before it could even sink in Shulk spoke again but this time his tone was a lot weaker.

"Sharla thank you for looking after us for all these years, if it wasn't for your abilities and knowledge we wouldn't have made it out of the Ether Mines alive all those years ago."

As Shulk finished speaking the tears that were beginning to collect within Melia's eye were now at a point that she was struggling to hold them back considering that everyone around her had already shed a tear in some form or another. Before anyone could say anything more, Shulk spoke again to everyone which in turn knocked the ability to cry out of Melia for a few moments because of what he said.

"Could I ask for a few minutes alone with Melia?"

What the young princess couldn't understand was why Shulk wanted to spent what few minutes or hours that he had left speaking to her alone when he could have spent that time with everyone else or just Fiora but before Melia could even question Shulk on the matter Fiora was already gone along with Sharla and Reyn.

"Melia I want you to tell me the true, do you still have feeling for me?"

The shock of hearing those words from Shulk bought all her feeling of love for Shulk back to the surface which had a knock on affect of making it harder for Melia to hide those feelings from Shulk. The other problem that Melia now faced was trying to understand what Shulk really meant by his words, did he know about her true feeling towards him or was it just a normal question with no meaning behind it.

"Of course I have feeling for you Shulk, you and those closest to me are my family now so if something was to happen to any of you it would hurt me deeply."

As Melia waited for Shulk reply she could feel that those feeling were getting stronger with each passing second but Melia did what she had always done seen the end of their journey and that was to hide those feeling from everyone including herself.

"You are correct, we have been through a lot together which has bought us all closer together but what I really mean is does your heart still have feelings of love towards me?"

Meila felt her heart skip a beat knowing that Shulk had somehow figured out her true feelings towards him but what she couldn't understand was how he had discovered this fact. Melia took a few moments to try and figure out who it could have been considering that the only person that she had told about her feeling for Shulk was Sharla but even when she did bring up the subject she had always made sure that they were alone and away from the others. As the princess looked down at the dying Shulk she decided that now was the best time to come clear about the whole situation.

"Yes ... I do have feeling towards you Shulk but...how did you find out?"

"It was something that Tryea had said to me when we came to rescue you but it wasn't till a few years after those events that I finally pieced everything together and understood what she truly meant, how long have you had these felling towards me?"

As Melia through back to the time that Tryea had captured her, Tryea had told Melia that she was aware of her weakness and that she was planning on using everything that she had to exploit this weakness. Even after those events Melia never found out how Tryea had discovered this information and who else she could have told.

"I have lie enough to you Shulk so I will tell you the true, I have had these feeling for you since the first time we met back in Makna Forest but after I saw the chemistry between you and Fiora I decided to move on with my life."

"But you didn't, did you?"

Shulk was correct, even though Melia had told Sharla just before the final battle with Zanza that she was going to move on from Shulk and find someone else to love she couldn't because each person she dated after that day she would compared them to him.

"At the beginning I tired but... each time someone tried to get close to me I... just didn't feel the same connection as I did with you?"

As Shulk laid there listening to Melia proured her heart out to him, she could feel the tears that had disappeared earlier come flooding back but this time Melia did not have the will power to stop them and because of this tears began to run down her cheeks. The moment Shulk saw these tears from Melia he used what little strength he had to grab the box of tissues that were beside him and passed them to her before speaking again.

"You have nothing to be upset about Melia, if anything I should have paid more attention to you and those around me while we were travelling..."

Melia wouldn't allow Shulk to take the blame for her own actions and decided to interrupt him.

"Shulk you cannot blame yourself for my actions, I made the choice that I could not compete against Fiora and because of that I decided to live my life the way I have."

As Melia paused for a moment she took the box of tissues that Shulk had passed to her and began to wipe away the tears that were now flooding down her cheeks.

"If I was in your shoes Shulk, I would have done exactly the same thing and gone after the person I loved. I am happy for both of you and I do not have any resentment against you or Fiora because you two were destined to be together."

With the tears continuing to flow from her eyes, Melia did everything that she could with the tissues in her hand to wipe them away but for some reason she couldn't get them to stop and in the end her feeling got the better of her.

"I am nothing more than a weak girl that is still hung up on her first crush and is unfit to rule the High Entia."

This was not the first time that Shulk had witnessed Melia doubt herself but Shulk was not going to allow her to believe her own words because he knew that she was better than those words.

"You may still have a crush on me Melia but if you are this weak girl that you claim to be then how has she been able to rebuild her home of Alcamoth while at the same time bring all four races together. However much you want to believe that you are that weak girl; ask yourself this one question, what have you been able to accomplish while in power. Before I die I want you to promise me one thing and that is start the family that you have always wanted."

Anyone close to Melia knew that she also wanted to start a family of her own but because of how much time she had spent comparing Homs and High Entias to Shulk it meant that she never got round to starting this family. While removing the tears from her eyes Melia told Shulk that she would give it a try but it would take time to which Shulk understood and told her that he would be watching her to make sure she fulfilled his promise. It was that this point that Shulk asked if she could call the others back into the room once she had composed herself. Once everyone was back in the room they could all see that Shulk didn't have much time life because the colour from his skin had gone very pale but before anyone could comment on it Shulk began to speak to them all.

"Sharla once I leave this world I would like you not to try and bring me back to life, I want to die in peace so will you be able to do that for me?"

Before answering the question that was posed before her, Sharla took a moment to look towards Fiora as she felt that at the end of the day it would be both Shulk and Fiora's decision as to what happened next. As Sharla looked at Fiora she could see that Fiora gave her a very slight nodded in agreement to Shulk's request.

"I shall do as you have asked Shulk, is there anything else you would like me to do for you?"

"You have done more than enough for me Sharla, and I thank you for that. Reyn you have been such a great friend to me and an even better husband to Sharla and because of that I couldn't have asked for a better friend than you."

Everyone could hear it within Shulk voice that he didn't have much time left before the end.

"Fiora you have been my compass and because of that I thank you and tell you that I will always love you, please look after yourself and our son."

Upon hearing those words the tears that had been there since they all arrived back in the room began to fall from Fiora's eyes and it was at this very moment that Fiora bought herself closer to her husband to give him one final kiss good bye and to ask him to do one last thing for her.

"When you see Dunban please tell him that I still miss him."

As Fiora planted her kiss on Shulk's forehead he whispered his final words before closing his eyes and leaving this world in peace.

"I will."

With those words Fiora arose from besides Shulks now lifeless body and began to cry along with Sharla, the moment Reyn realised that Sharla was cry he place his arms around and pulled her closer to him while at the same time holding back the tears that he so badly wanted to shed for best friend. As Shulk body laid there on the bed, Melia could see how much pain Fiora was in but for how ever much Melia didn't want to cry she couldn't stop herself and because of this she made her way over to Fiora so that she could try and comfort herself along with Fiora.


	5. Chapter 5: You Will Be Missed

Chapter 5: You Will Be Missed

After a few minutes of crying Sharla found what strength she could to stop the tears of sadness from falling from her eyes and began to pull away from Reyn so that she could wipe them away and ask Fiora what she wanted done with Shulk's body. As expected Fiora told Sharla that Shulk had placed a boat round the back of the house ready for this time and that he wanted his body to be place on the boat and set alight in the ocean so that he could return to the world.

Upon hearing Fiora's request, Sharla asked Melia if she could keep Fiora company while she and Reyn moved Shulk's body from the bed to boat. The young princess did as her friend had asked and escorted Fiora into kitchen where Melia processed to make something to drink. While making the drinks, Fiora took the opportunity to compose herself while also wiping away the tears so that she could thank Melia for coming to see them before Shulk's passing.

"Thank you for getting here when you did, it meant a lot to Shulk that you were able to make it here before the end. Shulk understood how upset you were when you were unable to say good bye to Dunban and that was why he had asked Sharla to contact you right away."

The crown princess of the High Entia was lost for words at that moment in time and because of this Fiora was able to ask the real question that she had.

"If I may ask Melia, what did Shulk ask you to promise him?"

Because of this Melia stopped what she was doing to think of how she was going to reply to the question. It came as no surprise to her that Fiora had asked the question because she had suspected it would be either her or Sharla but what Melia was not expecting was it to be asked so soon have Shulk's death.

"He asked me to start the family that I always wanted."

"I guess Shulk told you that he knew about your feeling towards him?"

With everything that had happened so far the young princess could tell that her facial expression had failed her and that she was not surprised to learn that Fiora was aware of this knowledge considering the two of them were married but it did take her a few moments to answer.

"Yes, Shulk did tell me that he had learned about my...feeling towards him and because of that I continued...my life using that as an excuse."

With Fiora not saying anything for a few moments Melia quickly finished off the drinks and navigated themselves to the table in the kitchen to seat down and continue the talk. Once seated, Melia took it upon herself to explain the situation more clearly to Fiora.

"Fiora I want you to know that even though I still had feelings towards Shulk I was always happy for the two of to be together and that is why I did everything that I could to make sure that I wouldn't jeopardise yours and our relationship with him."

"How have you been able to keep a smile on your face for so many years knowing that the person you loved was with someone else?"

Just as Melia was about to reply to Fiora's question she stop herself because she didn't want to highlight the fact that Sharla was also aware of the situation which would have only complicit the matter further.

"Seeing a smile on Shulk's face allowed me to continue to smiling each and every day."

Melia could see that Fiora was stunned by her words and because of that it took Fiora a few moments before she spoke again.

"How have you been able to stay this strong for all these years?"

Just as Melia was about to say her answer she decided to stop herself knowing deep down that those words were untrue and that Shulk would not have allowed her to belittle herself anymore.

"I have always looked to those closest to me for strength."

With Shulk's body placed on top of the pile of wood in the boat both Reyn and Sharla manoeuvred the boat to the ocean front and submerged just under half of the boat before Sharla told her husband that she was going to get both Fiora and Melia.

As Reyn watched as his wife began to walk back towards the house, Reyn turned his attention back towards the boat that now carried his friend and began speak to him as a handful of tears began to escape from his eyes.

"I am going to miss you man...I will treasure the time we spent together and I look forward to hearing what you have been up to when I finally join you, stay safe my dear friend."

Once Reyn had finished speaking he began to compose himself while at the same time wiping away the tears that had collected at the bottom of his chin. By the time Reyn had fully composed himself, he could hear the footsteps of the three women heading towards him.

When the four remaining friends came together, Fiora took this opportunity to speak to them all about the life she had spend with Shulk.

"I have lost count of how many years I have known Shulk for but within that time frame we have been able to share some of the greatest memories together and today has been no expectation. I know that I am not the only one that will miss him but all I can hope for is for him to keep a watch over us until the day we can all finally join him along with those that have all ready passed."

Melia could see that no one could add anything to Fiora's final words of farewell to the one she loved. With that the four of them made their way to the boat so that they could begin pushing the last half of the boat into ocean so that it could seat sail towards the horizon. As the boat began to sail out to the ocean, Fiora turned to Melia and asked her if she could do the honour in setting the boat alight, Melia felt honoured that Fiora had ask her to do this and with a heavy heart and a tear forming in her eye the young princess called upon the ether within her body to create a Summon Flare that she discharge inside the boat setting it alight. As the sun was began to rise the four of them stood on the edge of the beach with the ocean washing across their feet as they watched the boat carrying their friend and loved one out to sea.

The End

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Thank you for taking the time to read my story and I hope that have also enjoyed it.


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